The Weekly Project: 13 July, 2018

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We’re more than halfway through 2018 and I’m clearly in denial. I keep writing that it’s May on everything, which might be my subconscious attempt at getting this year to slow down.

I sat down Tuesday morning to write my mid-year goals update and I wasn’t excited. Henry had been up a lot the night before. I slept in and didn’t get up to write before he woke up. I had deadlines that were looming and felt a little underneath it all.

Then I started to look at the ambitious goals I set at the beginning of the year and I was getting frustrated with the lack of progress I’m making. If only I could work better, faster!

When Henry woke up early from his nap, I decided to go walk off the anxiety. Surely a walk through the countryside would help me clear my head and feel better and more focused.

As I was pushing him along in the stroller, I saw a white hat bobbing in the long grass.

As I got closer I realized it was an older man who had fallen in the thick, tall grass. He had seen me coming up the path and was waving his hat trying to get my attention. It’s a very hot day (for England) and I have no idea how long he was laying there, but he wasn’t able to stand on his own. He asked me not to call his wife or an ambulance, so over the next hour and a half, some very kind people and I helped him home in a wheelbarrow.

During that hour and a half, we chatted about his life (he’s 95!), his wife, and how much he loves his daily walks.

As I left his house, Henry started crying. And so did I. Maybe I haven’t done all I’ve wanted to in the last 6 months. Maybe we haven’t hit our savings goals or our portfolio hasn’t performed as well as we’d hoped. Maybe I won’t get another client this week or this month.

But tonight when Henry wakes up at 4 am and needs me, it’s ok. When I don’t finish getting through my to-do list tonight because I spent over an hour of my afternoon helping this man get home, that’s ok.

If you’re not getting to the big goals that you set for yourself and you feel a little underneath it all as well, remember to give yourself a little compassion. You’re doing the best you can.

And it all else fails, it helps to pretend it’s still May.

ICYMI

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DIY Investing Options. This week we have article #3 in the 4 part series: Two easy DIY investing options. I talk about the picking a brokerage, the pros and cons, and how exactly to get started. If you’ve been dragging your feet with investing because it feels overwhelming to get started, this article is for you. Did you miss the first articles in the series? Read part 1 (Why invest?) and part 2 (WTF: what’s the fee).

PS: article #4 is answering one of the most asked questions I receive – when should you hire a professional?

Goal-getter. Halfway through the year and it’s time to check in on our goals. There have definitely been some highs, but also some very expensive lows (like our costly rental property). We’re on track with some of our financial and life goals, but in other areas, I’ve made really slow progress. I’m breaking down the good, the bad, and the very expensive in this goals update.

Make Me Smart

smart-ish reads from around the internet

The way out of burnout. Somehow being busy has become a badge of honor and I occasionally find myself getting caught up in this trap. Rather than enjoying doing nothing, I’ll feel guilty for my lack of productivity. This article speaks exactly to this issue. When I read this line, “a feeling of exhaustion accompanied by a nervy compulsion to go on regardless” I realized that though I hate the badge of busy, I am falling prey to it. How do beat this burnout? This psychoanalyst has some ideas.

How they did it. Like pretty much everyone else that I know, I was constantly refreshing the news to hear more about the rescue of the Thai soccer team. I’m not particularly claustrophobic but when I thought about sitting in a dark cave for 9 days without knowing whether or not anyone was looking for me, I was panicked. How did these boys keep their cool? Their coach trained to be a monk for 10 years and taught them how to meditate. Maybe it’s time to open up that meditation app and give it a go once more.

The dictionary threw shade. While the internet is busy discussing whether Kylie is or isn’t a self-made woman, there were some other fascinating stories on the Forbes America’s Richest Self-Made Women List. My favorite story is from Eren Ozman, who worked as a night janitor for Sierra Nevada Corp before she and her husband bought the company. And she sold baklava to put herself through business school. Really.

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